When riding a snowboard, kiteboard, or wakeboard, each of the user's boots is secured to the board surface with an apparatus called a “binding.” The bindings keep the user and board from separating during the ride down the slope or across the water. Bindings are also commonly configured to transfer forces from the user to the board, allowing the user to control the board during the ride.
For snowboarding, one common type of binding for use with a snowboard may be referred to as a “strap-in” binding that may be designed to receive a boot, such as, for example, a “soft boot.” A strap-in binding commonly incorporates one or more adjustable straps that when tightened push the user's boot against the relatively rigid interior surfaces of the binding. The pressure of the straps and the interior surfaces hold the boot in the binding while the snowboard is in use and help the user to control the snowboard.
Another common type of snowboard binding may be referred to a “step-in” binding. A step-in binding may incorporate a relatively flat base that includes a mechanism that connects to hinges, fixtures, or other mechanisms on the bottom of the user's boot. A boot for use with a step-in binding is typically more rigid and sturdy than one typically used with a strap-in binding, and the rigid structures of the boot may transmit forces exerted by the user to the board, helping the user to control it. The construction that makes a boot for use with a step-in binding may also make the boot heavier than a soft boot, however, as may the hardware built into the boot that is needed to secure the boot to the snowboard.
Inconveniences attend the use of either of the strap-in binding and the step-in binding. For example, securing a boot inside a strap-in binding commonly requires that the user's hands be available to tighten the straps. A common problem is that a snowboard user cannot ride directly off of a ski lift and onto a slope, as skiers may do, because the user typically must first get off of the ski lift and then secure the remaining unattached boot to the appropriate binding. Also, when snowboarders ride the lift with one boot in the binding and one boot out of the binding, the entire weight of the snowboard causes a strain on the single foot and boot strapped into the binding.
Step-in bindings, as mentioned above, commonly entail using boots that may be heavier and stiffer than the soft boots that may typically be used with a strap-in binding. The weight and rigidity may make such boots less comfortable to wear than soft boots, and even experienced snowboard users may feel that the weight and rigidity compromise the user's control of the snowboard during a ride.
For wakeboarding and kiteboarding, two common types of bindings for use with the board may be referred to as an “open-toe” or “closed-toe” bindings. Both of these bindings may be designed to receive a foot without a boot as the binding itself incorporates the supportive structure around the user's foot and ankle to act as the boot as well as the interface to connect to the board and enable the user to control the board. Effectively, this boot/binding combination remains permanently fixed to the boards surface during normal use via threaded screws and threaded inserts in the board. Another common type of binding, primarily used for kiteboarding, may be referred to as a “strap” that may be designed to receive the foot without any supportive boot structure. The strap commonly incorporates a base underneath the foot and a strap stemming from that base that wraps laterally, from the arch of the foot, around the top of the foot with the heel and toes exposed.
Inconveniences attend the use of the open-toe and closed-toe binding. Due to the binding being affixed to the board for use via threaded screws and inserts, it is difficult to customize the fit of the binding for each individual user. Also, to secure feet into the bindings, each user must take a considerable amount of time to insert his or her feet into the binding to secure them tightly. This is done sometimes on land or on the boat, but also in the water. This inconvenience adds considerable amount of time when interchanging riders on the wakeboard.
Straps also have several shortcomings when used for kiteboarding. As the user must manage a kite and keep it in the air, the user's hands are usually required for such an operation, thus making securing of the foot into the straps very difficult. This requirement is one of the reasons why kiteboarders use straps as opposed to open-toe or closed-toe bindings that require the use of hands to adjust and secure them for usage. Also, when a kiteboarder is executing maneuvers such as flips and spins, straps fail to provide the proper support to keep the board securely on the user's feet and thereby can cause the board to fall off or become difficult to manage.